ENGROSSED
COMMITTEE SUBSTITUTE
FOR
Senate Bill No. 7
(By Senators Bailey, Sharpe, Minard and Hunter)
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[Originating in the Committee on Government Organization;
reported January 26, 2006.]
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A BILL to amend the Code of West Virginia, 1931, as amended, by
adding thereto a new article, designated §29-29-1, §29-29-2,
§29-29-3, §29-29-4, §29-29-5 and §29-29-6, all relating to
state flood protection planning; providing legislative
findings; defining terms; establishing the State Flood
Protection Planning Council and authorizing certain duties;
establishing State Flood Protection Planning Advisory
Committee and setting forth its duties; and reporting to the
Joint Legislative Oversight Commission on Water Resources.
Be it enacted by the Legislature of West Virginia:
That the Code of West Virginia, 1931, as amended, be amended
by adding thereto a new article, designated §29-29-1, §29-29-2,
§29-29-3, §29-29-4, §29-29-5 and §29-29-6, all to read as follows:
ARTICLE 29. FLOOD PROTECTION PLANNING ACT.
§29-29-1. Short title; legislative findings; purpose.
(a) This article may be known and cited as the Flood
Protection Planning Act.
(b) The West Virginia Legislature finds that:
(1) Flooding has affected each of the fifty-five counties and
thirty-two major watersheds within the state;
(2) Over the past forty years, more than two hundred fifty
West Virginians have died in floods;
(3) Between January, one thousand nine hundred ninety-six, and
September, two thousand four
, there have been sixteen federal
disaster declarations in West Virginia involving flooding for a
total cost to the Federal Emergency Management Agency of five
hundred million dollars; and
(4) Despite the many state and federal flood protection
programs and projects, flooding continues to be West Virginia's
most common and widespread natural disaster.
(c) It is the purpose of this article to provide a
comprehensive and coordinated statewide flood protection planning
program to save lives and reduce or mitigate flood damage while
supporting economic growth and protecting the environment.
§29-29-2. Definitions.
For purposes of this article:
(1) "Advisory Committee" means the State Flood Protection
Planning Advisory Committee; and
(2)"Council" means the State Flood Protection Planning Council.
§29-29-3. State Flood Protection Planning Council.
(a) The State Flood Protection Planning Council is
established. The council consists of five members: The Director
of the Division of Natural Resources or his or her designee; the
Secretary of the Department of Environmental Protection or his or
her designee; the Executive Director of the West Virginia
Conservation Agency or his or her designee; the Secretary of the
Department of Military Affairs and Public Safety or his or her
designee; and the Secretary of Transportation or his or her
designees.
(b) (1) The council designates one of its members in rotation
to be chair for a term of two years. In the absence of the chair,
any member designated by the members present may act as chair.
(2) The Executive Director of the West Virginia Conservation
Agency or his or her designee is designated as the temporary chair
and he or she shall call the members together for an organizational
meeting on or after the effective date of this article.
(c) The council shall meet no less than quarterly at the time
and place designated by the chair. All decisions of the council
shall be decided by a majority vote of the members.
§29-29-4. Powers and duties.
The council:
(1) Serves as coordinator of all flood protection programs and
activities in the state;
(2) Annually reviews the state flood protection plan and updates the plan no less than biannually;
(3) Recommends legislation to reduce and mitigate flood
damage;
(4) Reviews and implements recommendations of the advisory
committee;
(5) Reports to the Legislative Oversight Commission on Water
Resources at least quarterly;
(6) Catalogs, maintains and monitors a listing of current and
proposed capital expenditures to reduce and mitigate flood damage;
(7) Coordinates planning of flood projects with federal
agencies;
(8) Improves professional management of floodplains;
(9) Provides education and outreach on flooding issues to the
citizens of this state;
(10) Establishes a single website integrating all agency flood
information; and
(11) Takes all other actions necessary and proper to
effectuate the purposes of this article.
§29-29-5. State Flood Protection Planning Advisory Committee;
members; meetings; duties.
(a) The State Flood Protection Planning Advisory Committee is
established. The purpose of the advisory committee is to create a
comprehensive group of state and federal agencies working together
to assist the council in the performance of its duties as stated in
section four of this article.
(b) The members of the advisory committee are appointed by the council for their technical and policy expertise and experience in
flooding issues and include a representative of each of the
following agencies: U. S. Army Corps of Engineers, Natural
Resources Conservation Service, National Weather Service, U. S.
Geological Survey, Federal Emergency Management Agency, West
Virginia Division of Forestry, West Virginia Department of
Environmental Protection, West Virginia Division of Highways, West
Virginia Development Office, West Virginia Division of Natural
Resources, West Virginia Housing Development Fund, West Virginia
Insurance Commission, Division of Homeland Security and Emergency
Management, West Virginia Board of Risk and Insurance Management
and West Virginia Bureau for Public Health. Two members of the
advisory committee shall be floodplain managers. One member shall
be from the West Virginia Association of Counties. One member
shall be from the West Virginia Municipal League. Two members
shall represent public or nonprofit organizations.
(c) The advisory committee elects a chair from its membership
for a term of two years. The advisory committee shall meet
regularly at the time and place designated by the chair or by call
of a majority of the advisory committee members. All decisions of
the advisory committee are made by a majority vote of the members.
(d) The chair of the advisory committee may appoint
subcommittees, prescribe their jurisdiction and designate a
subcommittee chair.
§29-29-6. Joint legislative oversight.
(a) The Joint Legislative Oversight Commission on Water Resources oversees the council.
(b) The expenses of the commission are to be approved by the
Joint Committee on Government and Finance and paid from legislative
appropriations.
(c) The chair of the council reports to the commission
no less
than quarterly on the status of all comprehensive and coordinated
statewide flood protection planning activities and proposed
legislative recommendations. The chair of the council shall submit
an annual report to the commission by the thirty-first day of
December each year.